Scan barcode
A review by jessdlibrarian
Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork
5.0
Marcelo in the Real World is an innovative and touching story about a young man with an "autism-like" condition whose father believes he needs to try to function in the "real world." This story is definitely realistic and frighteningly so. Marcelo's father doesn't seem to understand him, and it seems as if he doesn't try. In fact, it turns out that he is embarrassed by his son's differences.
I found the characters in this story to be fully formed and genuine. Each of them has their own backstory and reasons behind the way they act -- Jasmine, Marcelo's parents, Wendell -- whether those reasons are excusable is another story. Wendell seems to be just a jerk, but perhaps he's only seeking his father's approval. Jasmine made a stupid mistake, but she regrets it constantly. There are many deep psychological issues that can explain what she did and what she does in the story. For example, her mother died when she was young, and she was left to fill the position in the household. She had to take care of her alcoholic father and older brother. Jonah explains that “after [her mother] died, Jasmine became a little mother for the family real quick” (243). After escaping to Boston she craved freedom and love and found it where she could.
The most thrilling and touching part of the story is how much Marcelo grows and transforms throughout the summer. He grows from being caring very little about people in general (part of Asperger’s, which is likely his unspecified condition) to caring so much about a girl he doesn’t even know that he will do anything he can manage to help her. He learns a lot in one summer – more than he ever would have learned at the stable. So, I believe that his father might have been right to force him to step out of his comfort zone and into the “real world.”
I really wonder where the story would go after this. I’d love to read a sequel or hear from the author to know if Jasmine and Marcelo would become a couple or just be friends.
I found the characters in this story to be fully formed and genuine. Each of them has their own backstory and reasons behind the way they act -- Jasmine, Marcelo's parents, Wendell -- whether those reasons are excusable is another story. Wendell seems to be just a jerk, but perhaps he's only seeking his father's approval. Jasmine made a stupid mistake, but she regrets it constantly. There are many deep psychological issues that can explain what she did and what she does in the story. For example, her mother died when she was young, and she was left to fill the position in the household. She had to take care of her alcoholic father and older brother. Jonah explains that “after [her mother] died, Jasmine became a little mother for the family real quick” (243). After escaping to Boston she craved freedom and love and found it where she could.
The most thrilling and touching part of the story is how much Marcelo grows and transforms throughout the summer. He grows from being caring very little about people in general (part of Asperger’s, which is likely his unspecified condition) to caring so much about a girl he doesn’t even know that he will do anything he can manage to help her. He learns a lot in one summer – more than he ever would have learned at the stable. So, I believe that his father might have been right to force him to step out of his comfort zone and into the “real world.”
I really wonder where the story would go after this. I’d love to read a sequel or hear from the author to know if Jasmine and Marcelo would become a couple or just be friends.